Hi-lite clip

ABSTRACT

Hair clip used for hair coloring services, specific to highlighting and low lighting techniques, and the like. The hair clip is easily maneuverable, easily transportable, inexpensive to manufacture, and lightweight. The hair clip comprises of a first hair gripping arm body, a second hair gripping arm body, and a spring attachment for connecting the first hair gripping arm body to the second hair gripping arm body.

CROSS REFERENCES

The preseny application is a continuation of my application Ser. No.12/927,376 filed Nov. 13, 2010, entitled “Balboa hi-lite clip.” Theapplication is incorporated herein by this reference which is notadmitted to be prior art with respect to the present invention by itsmention in the background. It is incorporated in this reference to givea priority date with respect to the present invention.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to hair clips. More particularlyto a hair clip that seamlessly clasps hair in place, maintains hairintegrity without an entanglement, and holds sectional hair strands inplace so that the hair can be colored or highlighted for best resultswith ease and convenience by a professional or an amateur.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

Hair clips are great devices for securing a user's hairstyle. Hair clipscome in a wide range of shapes, colors, styles, and sizes. This range inshape, color, style, and size allows a user to find a customized hairclip that appropriately compliments any given hair length. When it comesto their functionality, most hairclips are used as tools to effortlesslysecure a user's hair. Other hairclips have other varied uses such asholding hair bangs off a user's face, assisting in moving hair out ofthe way while washing face, or even helping a person shower withoutgetting the hair wet, And then, there are also some others that areknown for their aesthetic reasons as hair adornments or hairaccessories.

Hair clips typically comprise of an upper body and a lower body,attached together by a spring member, disposed or engaged between thehair retainers, or clamping plates at the one end portion. This typicaldesign makes it convenient for a user to open and close the hair clipwith a pivot shaft and enables the user to maintain hair strands inplace.

Most conventional hair clips in the today's market are not designed norused for highlighting/hair coloring processes. Hair stylists that do useconventional hair clips for hair highlighting/hair coloring processesface limitations in their use and are frustrated in the totality oftheir functionality. Frustrations may include time lost, added laborcosts, and inconvenience caused to customers because of unexpecteddelays or undesired result. Either way, the limited functionality of aconventional hair clip forces most hair stylists to use more than oneconventional hair clip to attain best results. The present inventioneliminates the disadvantage of using multiple conventional hair clips.

For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a hair clip device thatcould be used for hair coloring or hair highlighting with ease andefficiency. The hair clip should be easily maneuverable, easilytransportable, inexpensive to manufacture, and lightweight.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a quick andeasy, all-in-one multi-functional Hi-Lite Clip used in hair coloring orhair highlighting services at an affordable cost, used to section offany part of the hair strands with great flexibility, used to hold hairproperty in place, used to restore hair integrity without any hairdamage or entanglement, and help any user attain a professional haircolor look in a reasonable time.

The Hi-Lite Clip of the present invention comprises of a lower clip andan upper clip adhered together with a pivot locking mechanism consistingof a solid hinge pin and a coil spring attachment. The lower clip of thepresent invention will he primarily used to section off hair during hairhighlighting or hair coloring processes. Once the Hi-Lite Clip isclosed, when the lower clip and upper clip engage with each other, thelower clip will enable the user to secure and maintain the sectioned offhair properly in place. This proper hair placement is ensured due to theremarkable design of the inner side of the lower clip of the presentinvention. The inner side of the lower clip consists of slanted yetrobust straight grips that will ensure that the subject's hair will stayput without any damage or entanglement.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the Hi-Lite Clipcomprises of an upper clip. The upper clip of the present invention is acombination of an irregular section that consists of several teeth orbristles of various sizes. The teeth or bristles of the upper clip willfunction to secure hair strands to be colored or highlighted uniformlyin place. A further embodiment of the upper clip comprises of a smooth,curved section that extends out of the side of upper clip. Thisprimarily allows a user to “grab” the hair easily and effortlessly.

By and large, many hair professionals/stylists use industry standardhighlight and lowlight techniques to add dimension to hair color bymixing light and dark color strands. The process of added dimension tohair color is achieved by using intricate procedures of weaving orslicing hair strands, and then subsequently, placing the hair strands onseparate foils. Indeed, this is a time consuming process for anyoneincluding hair professionals and their customers. Furthermore, the haircoloring/hair highlighting processes require a tedious and monotonousprocess where the hair has to be sectioned off first, followed byworking on a particular subsection of the hair, which is subsequentlyweaved or sliced. Thereafter, these subsections of hair endure a timeconsuming and a cumbersome process where the hair subsections need to beseparated and placed away. The user can only do this by holding it withanother small clip, which most of the time gets tangled with the rest ofhair sectioned off and causes delay and frustration.

Additionally, once the first sectioned off weaved hair is separated andclipped up, the hair stylist then has to further proceed weaving totreat the next subsection, a time intensive procedure. This is done byholding the next hair to be weaved, and then placing it on the foil tobe colored. The present invention allows the hair professional to reducethe time required to highlight hair.

The present invention enables the hair professional to section off theworking hair section using the lower clip, and then immediately, placingthe first weaved or sliced subsection of the hair on top of upper clip.The first sliced subsection of the hair on top of the upper clip willstay locked over the uneven teeth/bristles of the upper hairclip withoutany interference. The locking of the hair over the uneven teeth of theupper clip will ensure that the hair will fall seamlessly over thesmooth, curved section of the upper clip. With the first hair subsectionprocess out of the way, the hair professional can easily weave or slicethe next subsection to be colored or highlighted without any worriesthat the first subsection of hair could get tangled up.

Proceeding ahead, the next weaved subsection, after completion, can beplaced across the first weaved subsection of the hair. Since thetotality of the separated hair will fall on the smooth, curved sectionof the upper clip, it will make it quick and easy for the hairprofessional to grab the foil, bring each set of the subsection hairstrands, place each of them on the foil in one continuous and easy flow,all without getting any of the hair tangled up with the other layers ofthe hair. In all, the present invention allows the hair professional tosection hair, secure each hair subsection, and treat each hair sectionwith hair color just by using one multi-functional clip, a job usuallydone by multiple hair clips.

The present invention has handles that are ergonomic. The upper cliphandle is square with a concave form inside and bigger than the lowerclip handle. Lower clip handle is rectangular and smaller than upperhair clip handle. The lower hair clip handle is also ergonomic with aconcave center and ensures easy and convenient use.

An object of the present invention is to provide a quick and easyprocess for hair coloring or hair highlighting by allowing the hairprofessional to partition off hair sections effectively.

Another object of the present invention is to allow the hairprofessional or any person to use an inexpensive hair clip to sectionoff, secure and color treat different parts of hair strands, all withthe help of an all-in-one multifunctional hair clip that saves time,reduces cost and increases productivity.

Another object of the present invention is to minimize any damage orentanglement of hair with each other, while the hair is sectioned off indifferent sets during the hair coloring or hair highlighting processes.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a quick andeffortless use of hair coloring or hair highlighting for any person whois interested in instantly transforming their hair look in matter ofminutes without having to go to a professional hairstylist, thus savingtime and money.

A further object of the present invention is to give any person who usesthe present invention, the freedom of try out various varieties of haircolor on several different types of hair lengths or several differenttypes of hair textures, that they have ever dreamed of, thus enablingthe user to have the ultimate freedom to choose any particular hairstylethat best suits their look, taste and personality.

DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with regard to the followingdescription, appended claims, and drawings where:

FIG. 1 is a perspective front side plan view of the hair clip in an openposition;

FIG. 2 is a perspective back side plan view of the hair clip in an openposition;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the upper clip piece of the hairclip;

FIG. 4 is an interior view of upper piece of the hair clip;

FIG. 5 is an interior view of lower piece of the hair clip;

FIG. 6 is an outer view of lower piece of the hair clip;

FIG. 7 is a side view of lower piece of the hair clip;

FIG. 8 is a side view of upper piece of the hair clip; and

FIG. 9 is a detailed oblique view of perspective angle of upper piece ofthe hair clip.

DESCRIPTION

With reference to FIGS. 1-9, a hair clip 10, the hair clip 10 comprisesof a first hair gripping arm body 19, the first hair gripping arm body19 defines curbed smooth top 11 that curbs into a bristled section 12running along most of the length of the first hair gripping arm body 19,the first hair gripping arm body 19 further defines a first gripping armhandle 15 that runs along the remaining length of the first hairgripping arm body 19, the first hair gripping arm handle defines a firstaperture 50, and the first hair gripping arm body 19 further defines arow of uneven teeth 16 that also run along most of the length of thefirst hair gripping arm body 19, yet on the opposite side of thebristled section 12 of the first hair gripping arm body 19. The hairclip 10 further comprises of a second hair gripping arm body 15, thesecond hair gripping arm body 15 defines a pointed section 17, a gripsection 18 and a handle section 14, the pointed 17 section flows intothe grip section 18 of the second hair gripping arm body 15 and the gripsection 18 flows into the handle section 14 of the second hair grippingarm body, the handle section 14 defines a second aperture 60. And, thehair clip further comprises of a spring attachment means 20, 21, and 22for attaching the first hair gripping arm body 19 to the second hairgripping arm body 15 after the first 50 and second apertures 60 arealigned so that the uneven teeth 16 of the first hair gripping arm body19 are aligned with grip section 18 of the second hair gripping arm body15. The grip section 18 might be a plurality of individual grips 18. Thehandles 13-14 of the first hair gripping arm body 19 and the second hairgripping arm body 15 are ergonomically shaped.

An advantage of the present invention is that it provides a quick andeasy process for hair coloring or hair highlighting by allowing the hairprofessional to partition off hair sections effectively.

Another advantage of the present invention is that it allows the hairprofessional or any person to use an inexpensive hair clip to sectionoff, secure and color treat different parts of hair strands, all withthe help of an all-in-one multifunctional hair clip that saves time,reduces cost and increases productivity.

Another advantage of the present invention is that it minimizes anydamage or entanglement of hair with each other, while the hair issectioned off in different sets during the hair coloring or hairhighlighting processes.

Yet another advantage of the present invention is that it provides aquick and effortless use of hair coloring or hair highlighting for anyperson who is interested in instantly transforming their hair look inmatter of minutes without having to go to a professional hairstylist,thus saving time and money.

A further advantage of the present invention is that it gives any personwho uses the present invention, the freedom of try out various varietiesof hair color on several different types of hair lengths or severaldifferent types of hair textures, that they have ever dreamed of, thusenabling the user to have the ultimate freedom to choose any particularhairstyle that best suits their look, taste and personality.

Although the present invention has been described in considerable detailin reference to certain preferred versions thereof, other versions arepossible. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the claims should not belimited to the description of the preferred versions contained herein.

1. A hair clip, the hair clip comprises: a first hair gripping arm body,the first hair gripping arm body defines curbed smooth top that curbsinto a bristled section running along most of the length of the firsthair gripping arm body, the first hair gripping ami body further definesa first gripping arm handle that runs along the remaining length of thefirst hair gripping arm body, the first hair gripping arm handle definesa first aperture, and the first hair gripping arm body further defines arow of uneven teeth that also run along most of the length of the firsthair gripping arm body, yet on the opposite side of the bristled sectionof the first hair gripping arm body; a second hair gripping arm body,the second hair gripping arm body defines a pointed section, a gripsection and a handle section, the pointed section flows into the gripsection of the second hair gripping arm body and the grip section flowsinto the handle section of the second hair gripping arm body, the handledefines a second aperture; and a spring attachment means for attachingthe first hair gripping arm body to the second hair gripping arm bodyafter the first and second apertures are aligned so that the uneventeeth of the first hair gripping arm body are aligned with grip sectionof the second hair gripping arm body.
 2. The hair clip of claim 1,wherein the grip section is a plurality of individual grips.
 3. The hairclip of claim 2, wherein the handles of the first hair gripping arm bodyand the second hair gripping arm body are ergonomically shaped.